We propose to study acute inflammation in the cornea, with specific emphasis on the responses of the tissue to a variety of noxious stimuli and on the alteration of these responses by various therapeutic modalites. Viable polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) will be isolated from the inflamed cornea and their morphologic, metabolic, and functional properties will be characterized. The role of these cells in host defense and their contribution to corneal damage will be evaluated. Elastase levels in PMNs derived from the inflamed cornea as well as elastase levels in the inflamed cornea itself will be measured and the corneal damage attributable to this enzyme will be assessed. The activity of the prostaglandin system in the cornea during acute inflammation will be defined. Both cyclooxygenase and lipoxygenase products of the arachidonic acid cascade will be evaluated and their relationship to neutrophil chemotaxis in the inflamed cornea will be assessed. In addition, the effectiveness of locally administered nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents, given alone and in conjunction with other drugs, on the suppression of corneal inflammation will be studied. Emphasis will be placed on the mechanisms through which the various agents act, with the objective of designing an optimal therapeutic regimen for corneal inflammatory diseases and for the rejection phenomenon of corneal transplantation.